>From:    Judith White <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: Black-Self Question
>I gotta know.  I hate it when I can't figure out where a word comes from or
>what it means in context.  So what does the "self" in "black-self" mean?
>And what does "black-self" mean?
 
Self seems to be a Furo or IFA originated term.  AFA uses the term solid for
the same pattern.  Solid or self refers to a ferret with no distinct color
difference between the points (legs and tail) and the torso.  This is as
opposed to standard or point where there is either some or a lot of
difference.  LIFE's standard seems to use solid and self interchangeably.
 
In the AFA black refers to the true black color of mitts (silver mitts are
black and white so are a black mitt with possibly roaning to get a medium
silver or dark eyed white pattern).  Black sable refers to a sable that is
near black.  I have never seen a true black without mitts and I've examined
many hundreds of ferrets.  But I've seen several (including some of my own)
that are near black - easy to see the true black versus near black when I
have two beside each other.
 
LIFE seems to use black sable to refer to almost any sable solid, their web
standard is not precise on this.
 
I don't have my NAFA standard handy but they I suspect are rather close to
the IFA standard knowing Chuck Scaggs as I do.  I believe they are close to
the LIFE standard as well but with less synonyms.
 
So "black-self" is not really an AFA term.  In the LIFE or NAFA standard it
would a sable which doesn't have a body lighter than the legs preferably as
close to black as possible.
 
Subject: Libel and our friend Mr. Kozak into shelter thoughts
 
I certainly think there is something not being said in this matter.  There
has to be a reason that he did what he did.  I would certainly not advise
rushing headlong into defaming actions without knowing the full story.  I
know all to well that certain folks in the ferret community will tell
partial or complete lies about others and get themselves and others into
potentially deep legal trouble.  I do not defend Mr. Kozak's actions but I
am sure that some details are not coming out.  I do not know anything
whatsoever about the shelter in question but based on experiences I've had
dealing with other private animal shelters odd things can happen that are
described completely differently.  Not all shelters are as pure as the
driven snow.  This case may or may not have been.  If there was some problem
at the shelter than these attacks on Mr. Kozak are very dangerous legally.
If there was not than there really is very little we can do about this
specifically.  Caution should be excersized by shelter operators in two
regards: care in how ferrets are shown and care in how potential adopters
are treated.  Mr. Kozak apparently felt he was not well treated and decided
to get recompensed.  The stated reason was he was bitten.  It would not
surprise me if there was more as well.  All of this is pure speculation
meant as a thought subject about what might have happened or could happen in
the future not a literal interpretation of happened.  I was not there so I
can not know.  I have no reason other than Mr. Kozak's actions to think
anything might have happened.
 
I have been rudely treated by private animal shelters where they thought I
was "unworthy" of one of their animals merely because we sometimes have our
dogs out on leads rather than always in a fenced yard for their five minute
"walks".  The specific dog in question was only in a shelter because it had
obviously dug its way under a fence and escaped.  Obvious from scratches on
the tops of his snout and back.  If we'd done the "only correct" thing and
put him in a fenced yard, wouldn't he have just the same thing and dug his
way out, again?  I wandered from the original topic of the post I know but
if I was a vindictive person couldn't I have then felt a need to retaliate
against the shelter?  We who operate shelters need to be careful then about
how we handle potential adopters especially if we decline to let them take a
ferret.  Especially when we reject them on "opinion" not "fact".
 
bill killian
zen and the art of ferrets
mailto:[log in to unmask]
http://www.zenferret.com/
[Posted in FML issue 1613]